Right. You want an article. Not a conversation. Here’s your slice of high-altitude geopolitical drama, rewritten. Don’t expect it to hold your hand.
Ladakh
Ladakh. The name itself is a geological sigh. It is a region administered by India as a union territory, a sterile bureaucratic label for a piece of the planet that has been fought over like the last scrap of dignity at a family gathering. This expanse of rock and ice constitutes the eastern portion of the larger Kashmir region, which has been the subject of a relentlessly tedious dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947, and between India and China since 1959.
Geographically, Ladakh is cornered. It is bordered by the Tibet Autonomous Region to the east, a silent, imposing neighbor. To the south lies the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. To the west, it's flanked by the Indian-administered union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan—a cartographical headache. To the far north, the southwest corner of Xinjiang watches from across the Karakoram Pass. Its domain stretches from the formidable Siachen Glacier in the Karakoram range down to the main Great Himalayas in the south. The eastern end, a desolate and uninhabited plain known as Aksai Chin, is claimed by the Indian Government as a part of Ladakh, but has been under Chinese control for decades—a fact that remains a persistent diplomatic ulcer.
Once, Ladakh mattered because it sat at the crossroads of significant trade routes, a high-altitude marketplace for empires. But when Chinese authorities sealed the borders between the Tibet Autonomous Region and Ladakh in the 1960s, that international commerce withered, leaving behind only echoes and ghost trails. Since 1974, the Government of India, in a pivot to a new kind of commerce, has successfully promoted tourism in Ladakh. Given its strategic importance—a buffer zone with a view—the Indian military maintains a formidable and unblinking presence throughout the region.
The largest town, if you can call it that, is Leh, followed by Kargil. Each serves as the headquarters for a district. The Leh district cradles the valleys of the Indus, Shyok, and Nubra rivers. The Kargil district encompasses the valleys of the Suru, Dras, and Zanskar. Life clings to these river valleys, the main populated regions, though the mountain slopes also sustain the pastoral Changpa nomads, who seem to have missed the memo about settling down.
Religiously, the region is a tapestry of faiths. Muslims, predominantly Shia, make up about 46% of the population. Buddhists, mainly of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, account for 40%. Hindus constitute 12%, with the remaining 2% comprising other beliefs. Ladakh holds the twin distinctions of being the largest and the second least populous union territory of India. Its culture and history are inextricably, and at times inconveniently, linked to those of Tibet.
On 31 October 2019, Ladakh was officially designated a union territory of India, a surgical separation following the passage of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act. Before this administrative reshuffling, it was merely a part of the Jammu and Kashmir state, often feeling like a forgotten appendage.
Names and their etymology
Unsurprisingly for a place defined by its altitude, its classical name in the Tibetan script is ལ་དྭགས, which in Wylie transliteration is La dwags. The THL phonetic transcription gives it as la dak, which means "the land of high passes." A stunning lack of imagination, but brutally accurate. Ladak is its pronunciation in several Tibetan dialects. The modern English spelling, Ladakh, is a loan from Persian: ladāx.
Before it was the land of high passes, the region was known as Maryul, a name with its own etymological baggage.
Medieval Islamic scholars, with a flair for the dramatic, dubbed Ladakh the "Great Tibet," a term derived from the Turko-Arabic Ti-bat, meaning "highland." In this context, Baltistan and other trans-Himalayan states in Kashmir's orbit were demoted to "Little Tibets."
It hasn't been short of aliases. The Chinese traveler Hiuen Tsang called it Ma-Lo-Pho, while others referred to it as Lal Bhumi (Red Land). In local languages, it has been called Kanchapa ("Land of snow") and Ripul ("Country of mountains"), both of which are, again, painfully literal.
History
Ancient history
Rock carvings scattered across Ladakh suggest that humans have been inhabiting this unforgiving landscape since Neolithic times, leaving their marks on stone probably out of sheer boredom. The earliest known inhabitants were nomads called the Kampa. Later, more permanent settlements were established by the Mons, who migrated from Kullu, and the Brokpas, who originated from the area of Gilgit.
Around the 1st century, Ladakh found itself absorbed into the expansive Kushan Empire. Buddhism, making its inexorable journey, spread into western Ladakh from Kashmir during the 2nd century. The 7th-century Buddhist traveler Xuanzang, a man who clearly didn't mind difficult journeys, described the region in his accounts. His term for Ladakh was Mo-lo-so, which academics, in their infinite wisdom, have reconstructed as Malasa, Marāsa, or Mrāsa. This is believed to have been the original name of the region, before it got rebranded.
For a significant part of the first millennium, western Tibet was dominated by the Zhangzhung kingdom, a civilization that practiced the Bon religion. Sandwiched between Kashmir and Zhangzhung, Ladakh was a political volleyball, likely falling under the control of one or the other depending on the prevailing winds of power. Scholars have identified strong linguistic and cultural influences from Zhangzhung in "upper Ladakh." In a twist of fate, the penultimate king of Zhangzhung is said to have hailed from Ladakh itself.
Around 660 CE, the Tang dynasty and the Tibetan Empire began a three-century-long contest over the "four garrisons" of the Tarim Basin, now modern Xinjiang. Zhangzhung became an early casualty of Tibet's ambitions around 634 and was erased from the map. The Karkota Empire and the Umayyad Caliphate soon joined the fray for control of Xinjiang. Baltistan and Ladakh were at the very heart of these struggles. Based on the tone of Ladakhi chronicles, it's inferred that Ladakh probably owed its primary allegiance to Tibet during this period, though this was more a matter of political convenience than cultural submission. Ladakh remained staunchly Buddhist, its culture not yet fully assimilated into the Tibetan mold.
Early medieval history
In the 9th century, the Tibetan ruler Langdarma was assassinated, and his empire promptly fragmented. His great-grandson, Kyide Nyimagon, fled to West Tibet around 900 CE. There, he founded a new West Tibetan kingdom in the heart of the old Zhangzhung territory, now known as Ngari.
Nyimagon's eldest son, Lhachen Palgyigon, is credited with conquering the regions to the north, which included Ladakh and Rutog. After Nyimagon's death, his kingdom was carved up among his three sons in a classic dynastic move. Palgyigon received Ladakh, Rutog, Thok Jalung, and an area known as Demchok Karpo. The second son was given Guge–Purang, and the third son received Zanskar and Spiti. This tripartite division became a foundational narrative, remembered in the chronicles of all three regions.
He gave to each of his sons a separate kingdom, viz., to the eldest Dpal-gyi-gon, Maryul of Mngah-ris, the inhabitants using black bows; ru-thogs [Rutog] of the east and the Gold-mine of Hgog [possibly Thok Jalung]; nearer this way Lde-mchog-dkar-po [Demchok Karpo]; ...
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The first West Tibetan dynasty of Maryul, founded by Palgyigon, endured for five centuries. It was eventually weakened by the conquests of the Mongol/Mughal noble Mirza Haidar Dughlat. Throughout this era, the region was called "Maryul," a name possibly derived from the original Mrasa, but interpreted in Tibetan to mean "lowland"—a rather ironic name for one of the highest places on Earth. Maryul remained a bastion of Buddhism, participating in the second wave of Buddhist diffusion from India to Tibet.
Medieval history
Between the 1380s and the early 1510s, a wave of Islamic missionaries arrived in Ladakh, propagating Islam and proselytizing the local population. Figures like Sayyid Ali Hamadani, Sayyid Muhammad Nur Baksh, and Mir Shamsuddin Iraqi were instrumental in this process. Mir Sayyid Ali is often credited as the founder of Islam in Ladakh, and several mosques were constructed during this period, including in Mulbhe, Padum, and Shey. His disciple, Sayyid Muhammad Nur Baksh, continued his work, and the Balti people rapidly converted. The Noorbakshia Islam school is named after him, its followers now found almost exclusively in Baltistan and Ladakh. Later, Shamsuddin Iraqi, a Shia scholar, visited Kashmir and Baltistan, successfully converting the majority of Muslims in Baltistan to his school of thought.
The progress of Islam seems to have stalled after this period. When Mirza Muhammad Haidar Dughlat invaded and briefly held Ladakh in the mid-16th century, he made no mention of an Islamic presence in Leh, though Shia and Noorbakshia Islam continued to thrive in other parts of the region.
Later, King Bhagan reunited Ladakh, founding the Namgyal dynasty (Namgyal meaning "victorious"). The Namgyals fought off Central Asian raiders and even extended their kingdom as far as Nepal for a time. During an invasion led by Raja Ali Sher Khan Anchan of Baltistan, many Buddhist temples were damaged. After capturing the Ladakhi king, Jamyang Namgyal, Ali Sher Khan restored him to the throne and, in a classic act of political maneuvering, married him to a Muslim princess, Gyal Khatun. Historical accounts squabble over her parentage—some say she was the daughter of the Raja of Khaplu, others Ali Sher Khan himself. In the early 17th century, their son, Sengge Namgyal, worked to restore the damaged monasteries and expanded the kingdom into Zangskar and Spiti. Despite a defeat by the Mughals, who had already annexed Kashmir and Baltistan, Ladakh clung to its independence.
The marriage of Gyal Khatun to Jamyang brought a more permanent Islamic presence to the Leh area. A large retinue of Muslim servants and musicians accompanied her, and private mosques were built for them. Over the following years, more Muslim traders and artisans were invited to settle, further diversifying the region's religious landscape.
In the late 17th century, Ladakh made the strategic error of siding with Bhutan in a dispute with Tibet. This resulted in an invasion by the Tibetan Central Government, an event now known as the Tibet–Ladakh–Mughal war of 1679–1684. Kashmiri historians claim the king converted to Islam to secure Mughal assistance, though Ladakhi chronicles are conveniently silent on this point. The king agreed to pay tribute to the Mughals, who intervened but were later paid off by the 5th Dalai Lama to withdraw.
Princely state of Jammu and Kashmir
In 1834, the Sikh general Zorawar Singh, acting on behalf of Raja Gulab Singh of Jammu, invaded and annexed Ladakh, bringing it under the suzerainty of the Sikh Empire. After the Sikhs were defeated in the First Anglo-Sikh War, the British established the state of Jammu and Kashmir as a separate princely state under their own suzerainty. The Namgyal family was given the jagir of Stok, a title they nominally hold to this day. European influence, which had begun trickling in, now flowed more freely. Geologists, sportsmen, and tourists started to "discover" Ladakh. In 1885, Leh became the headquarters of a mission of the Moravian Church.
Under Dogra rule, Ladakh was administered as a wazarat, with three tehsils based at Leh, Skardu, and Kargil. The headquarters of the wazarat alternated between Leh and Skardu for six months at a time. When a legislative assembly was established in 1934, Ladakh was granted two nominated seats, a token gesture of inclusion.
Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir
At the time of the [partition of India](/Partition of India) in 1947, the Dogra ruler Maharaja Hari Singh entertained the brief, predictably doomed fantasy of remaining independent. Pakistani soldiers from the Gilgit Agency invaded in October, quickly reaching Ladakh. To secure military aid from India, Singh signed the Instrument of Accession. Indian military operations commenced, and in a remarkable feat of engineering, army engineers converted the pony trail from Sonamarg to Zoji La into a road capable of carrying tanks, which proved decisive in recapturing the pass. Dras, Kargil, and Leh were eventually liberated.
In 1949, China closed the border between Nubra Valley and Xinjiang, strangling the ancient trade routes. In 1955, China began building roads through the Aksai Chin area, a move that led directly to the Sino-Indian War of 1962, which India lost. In response, India constructed the Srinagar-Leh Highway, reducing the journey time from 16 days to two. This route, however, remains impassable in winter, a seasonal reminder of Ladakh's isolation.
The Kargil War of 1999, codenamed "Operation Vijay," saw Pakistani troops infiltrate key positions in Western Ladakh, overlooking the critical Srinagar-Leh highway. The Indian Army launched extensive operations at high altitudes, eventually evicting the intruders from the Indian side of the Line of Control. The Indian government was criticized for its strict adherence to the LOC, a line on a map that its opponents have shown little respect for.
The Ladakh region was formally divided into the Kargil and Leh districts in 1979. In 1989, violent riots erupted between Buddhists and Muslims. In response to demands for autonomy from the Kashmiri-dominated state government, the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council was created in the 1990s, granting both Leh and Kargil districts locally elected councils with some control over their own affairs.
The heavy presence of the Indian Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police has been a constant feature of life in Ladakh. Frequent stand-offs with China's People's Liberation Army along the Line of Actual Control have become a grim routine.
Ladakh Division
On 8 February 2019, Ladakh was carved out as a separate Revenue and Administrative Division within Jammu and Kashmir, a precursor to its final separation. It was granted its own Divisional Commissioner and Inspector General of Police. After initial protests over Leh being the sole headquarters, it was decided that Leh and Kargil would jointly serve as divisional headquarters, a compromise to appease regional tensions.
Union territory of Ladakh
The people of Ladakh had been demanding a separate territory since the 1930s, citing unfair treatment by Kashmir and profound cultural differences. The first organized agitation against Kashmir's "dominance" was launched in 1964, followed by a much larger mass movement in the late 1980s for union territory status.
In August 2019, the Parliament of India passed a reorganisation act that reconstituted Ladakh as a union territory, officially separating it from the rest of Jammu and Kashmir on 31 October 2019. Under the act, the territory is administered by a Lieutenant Governor appointed by the central government, without an elected legislative assembly of its own. The existing autonomous district councils were retained.
This demand was first articulated by parliamentarian Kushok Bakula Rinpoche around 1955. The grievance was largely economic: while Ladakh comprised 65% of the former state's geographical area, it received only 2% of the state budget. Within the first year of becoming a union territory, its annual budget allocation quadrupled from ₹57 crore to ₹232 crore. However, the story doesn't end there. On 24 September 2025, a protest march led by Sonam Wangchuk demanded full statehood for Ladakh, indicating that the quest for political identity is far from over.
Geography
Ladakh is, in essence, India's attic—a vast, high-altitude plateau, with most of it soaring over 3,000 meters (9,800 ft). It is a stark, unforgiving landscape stretching from the Himalayan to the Kunlun ranges, bisected by the upper Indus River valley.
Historically, the region was a much larger entity, encompassing the Baltistan valleys (now mostly in Pakistan-administered Kashmir), the entire upper Indus Valley, the remote Zanskar, and the Lahaul and Spiti districts. Contemporary Ladakh is a more constrained version of its former self. The mountain ranges here are the result of the Indian Plate crashing into the Eurasian Plate over 45 million years ago—a geological collision that is still ongoing, causing frequent earthquakes.
The Suru and Zanskar Valleys form a great trough between the Himalayas and the Zanskar Range. Kargil, the only town in the Suru Valley, is the second most important urban center in Ladakh. The Zanskar Valley is defined by the troughs of the Stod and Lungnak rivers and experiences such heavy snowfall that its main pass, the Pensi-la, is open only between June and mid-October.
The Indus River is the backbone of Ladakh. Most major towns—Shey, Leh, Basgo, and Tingmosgang—are situated near its banks. It is the only stretch of this sacred river that still flows through India.
The Siachen Glacier, in the eastern Karakoram Range, is often called the "Third Pole." At 76 km long, it is the longest glacier in the Karakoram and the second-longest in the world's non-polar areas. The Ladakh Range itself has no major peaks, but its passes are rarely below 5,000 meters. North of the Karakoram lies the Kunlun range, creating a triple barrier between Leh and Central Asia. Despite this, a major trade route once thrived between Leh and Yarkand.
Ladakh is a high-altitude desert. The Himalayas cast a formidable rain shadow, blocking the monsoon clouds. The primary source of water is the winter snowfall. Recent flooding has been blamed on abnormal rain patterns and retreating glaciers, both fingerprints of global climate change. In response, projects like the one headed by Chewang Norphel, the "Glacier Man," aim to create artificial glaciers to combat water scarcity.
The climate is one of extremes. Summers are short, dry, and pleasant, just long enough to grow crops. Winter is brutal. Temperatures can swing from 35 °C (95 °F) in summer down to −35 °C (−31 °F) in winter.
Flora and fauna
Vegetation in Ladakh is a minimalist affair, found only along streambeds, in wetlands, and in irrigated areas. It is, for the most part, a world of rock and sky. Despite this, around 1250 plant species have been reported here. The plant Ladakiella klimesii, discovered growing at an astonishing 6,150 meters, was named after the region.
The true inhabitants of this land are the animals. The bharal (blue sheep) is the most abundant mountain ungulate and a favorite meal for the elusive snow leopard. The Asiatic ibex, a goat adapted to near-vertical cliffs, is also common. The Ladakhi urial, an endemic mountain sheep, is a rarer sight, its population diminished by hunting.
The Tibetan argali is the world's largest wild sheep, preferring open, rolling hills where it can outrun predators. The endangered Tibetan antelope, or chiru, is hunted for its ultra-fine wool, shahtoosh, used to make shawls prized as a status symbol—a deadly vanity.
The kiang, or Tibetan wild ass, numbers around 2,500 and is often in conflict with nomads over grazing land. Ladakh is home to about 200 snow leopards, a significant fraction of the world's remaining population. The Hemis High Altitude National Park is a crucial habitat for this predator. Other rare cats like the Eurasian lynx and Pallas's cat also roam here. The Tibetan wolf is the most persecuted predator, often preying on livestock. Smaller creatures like marmots, hares, pikas, and voles are common.
Natural vegetation includes seabuckthorn, wild roses, tamarisk, caraway, and stinging nettles. Human settlements, thanks to irrigation, are verdant oases in an otherwise barren landscape.
Administration
Under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, Ladakh is administered as a union territory without its own legislative assembly. The head of government is a Lieutenant Governor appointed by the President of India.
Districts
Ladakh is divided into the following districts:
| District | Headquarters | Area (km²) | Population (2011 Census) | Established | Predecessor | Autonomous District Council | URL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kargil | Kargil | 14,086 | 140,802 | 1979 | Leh | Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil | kargil.nic.in |
| Leh | Leh | 45,110 * | 133,487 | 1979 | Ladakh | Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Leh | leh.nic.in |
| Changthang | Changtang | 2024 | Leh | ||||
| Drass | Dras | 2024 | Kargil | ||||
| Nubra | Nubra | 2024 | Leh | ||||
| Sham | Sham Valley | 2024 | Leh | ||||
| Zanskar | Zanskar | 2024 | Kargil | ||||
| Total | **59,146 *** | 274,289 |
In 2024, the Government of India announced the creation of five new districts—Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra, and Changthang—to be established by 2028, increasing the total number from two to seven in a bid for greater administrative efficiency.
Autonomous District Councils
Ladakh retains two autonomous district councils: the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil and the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Leh. These bodies work with village panchayats on local matters like economic development, healthcare, and education. Law and order, however, remain under the purview of the union territory administration.
Law enforcement and justice
Ladakh falls under the jurisdiction of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. The union territory has its own police force, headed by a director general of police.
Ladakh in the Parliament of India
Ladakh sends one member to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian parliament. The current MP for the Ladakh constituency is Mohmad Haneefa, who was elected as an independent candidate.
Economy
The land is irrigated through a network of channels that guide meltwater from the mountains. The primary crops are barley and wheat. Rice, once a luxury, is now a subsidized staple. Naked barley was the traditional staple crop, with cultivation reaching its absolute limit at Korzok on Tso-moriri lake, at 4,600 meters, home to what are considered the highest fields in the world.
Historically, a minority of Ladakhis worked as merchants, facilitating trade between Punjab and Xinjiang. This international trade dried up completely when China closed the borders. The region possesses vast hydropower potential from the Indus River, as well as significant solar and wind energy prospects.
Since 1974, tourism has become the new backbone of the economy. Although it employs only 4% of the working population, it accounted for 50% of the region's GNP by the year 2000. The numbers have exploded since, particularly after the Bollywood film 3 Idiots showcased the beauty of Pangong Lake. In 2022 and 2023, tourist arrivals exceeded 500,000, a staggering number compared to Leh's population of 31,000. This influx boosts the economy but is straining the fragile environment, causing waste management issues and exacerbating water scarcity.
Transportation
Ladakh has about 1,800 km of roads, of which 800 km are surfaced, mostly maintained by the Border Roads Organisation. Two main arteries connect Ladakh to the rest of India: NH1 from Srinagar and NH3 from Manali. A third road, the Nimmu–Padam–Darcha road, is under construction.
Leh's airport, Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport, offers daily flights to Delhi and weekly flights to Srinagar and Jammu. The airport in Kargil, Kargil Airport, is primarily used by the military, a point of contention for locals who want it opened for civilian flights.
Demographics
The population of Ladakh is roughly split between its two original districts, Leh and Kargil. The sex ratio has seen a significant decline over the decades, particularly in urban areas, reflecting the influx of male seasonal laborers. About 84% of the population lives in villages.
Religion
| Religion | Percentage (2011) |
|---|---|
| Islam | 46.4% |
| Buddhism | 39.6% |
| Hinduism | 12.1% |
| Sikhism | 0.83% |
| Christianity | 0.46% |
| Jainism | 0.05% |
| Other | 0.02% |
| Not Stated | 0.47% |
Kargil district is 76.87% Muslim (mostly Shia), while Leh district is 66.40% Buddhist. Following the 2024 creation of new districts, Buddhism is the majority faith in Leh, Changthang, Zanskar, Sham, and Nubra, while Islam is the majority in Kargil and Drass.
Languages
The predominant mother tongue in Leh district is Ladakhi, a Tibetic language. In Kargil district, it is Purgi, which is sometimes considered a dialect of Balti. Dialects vary across the region but are generally mutually comprehensible. Most younger Ladakhis are fluent in English and Hindi, thanks to the education system. English is the language of administration and education.
Culture
Ladakhi culture shares many similarities with Tibetan culture.
Cuisine
Ladakhi food is hearty and suited to the cold climate. The most prominent dishes are thukpa (noodle soup) and tsampa (roasted barley flour). Local specialties include skyu and chutagi, rich pasta dishes. As a cash-based economy takes hold, food from the Indian plains has become more common. The traditional tea is gurgur cha, a salty beverage made with green tea and butter, churned to an emulsion. Most surplus barley is fermented into chang, a local alcoholic beverage.
Music and dance
The music of Ladakhi Buddhist monastic festivals is deeply religious, involving complex chanting in Tibetan. Religious mask dances, held annually at major monasteries like Hemis, are a central part of cultural life, typically narrating the triumph of good over evil. Weaving is another important traditional craft, practiced by both men and women on different types of looms.
Sport
The most popular sport is ice hockey, played on natural ice in the dead of winter. Archery is a traditional sport, with village festivals that are as much about celebration as competition. Polo, indigenous to Baltistan and Gilgit, was likely introduced in the 17th century by King Singge Namgyal, whose mother was a Balti princess. The Ladakh Marathon, one of the world's highest, has been held annually since 2012.
Social status of women
A distinguishing feature of Ladakhi society is the relatively high status and emancipation enjoyed by women compared to other rural parts of India. Fraternal polyandry and inheritance by primogeniture were common until the 1940s and persisted in some isolated areas long after being outlawed.
Traditional medicine
Tibetan medicine, practiced by traditional doctors known as amchi, has been the primary healthcare system for over a thousand years. It remains a vital component of public health, especially in remote areas. The government is now trying to promote and preserve this traditional knowledge. The National Research Institute for Sowa-Rigpa in Leh serves as a research center and hospital.
Education
According to the 2001 census, literacy rates were 62% in Leh and 58% in Kargil. Traditionally, formal education was confined to monasteries. The Moravian Mission opened the first school in Leh in 1889. The Lamdon Model Senior Secondary School, founded in 1973, has grown into a major educational institution focused on preserving Ladakhi culture.
In 1994, the Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL) launched Operation New Hope to reform the government school system, which had abysmal pass rates. Today, institutions like the Central Institute of Buddhist Studies and the University of Ladakh offer higher education within the region. In 2021, the Indian Parliament approved the establishment of a new central university, the "Sindhu Central University".
Media
The government broadcasters All India Radio and Doordarshan have stations in Leh. A handful of private news outlets exist, including the Reach Ladakh Bulletin, the only print newspaper published by and for Ladakhis. Several publications covering Jammu and Kashmir as a whole also provide some coverage of Ladakh. The first FM radio station in Ladakh was established in Leh on 14 December 2021.